Wildly increased barrel wear, lower density means lower sectional density means lower ballistic coefficient means it loses velocity faster in flight, the bullet would be unlikely to break up or expand in the target, and its low density means it's not going to penetrate armor as well as carbide or even steel.

Wildly increased barrel wear, lower density means lower sectional density means lower ballistic coefficient means it loses velocity faster in flight, the bullet would be unlikely to break up or expand in the target, and its low density means it's not going to penetrate armor as well as carbide or even steel.

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Yeah, this is pretty exhaustive.

Titanium is used in hunting arrowheads, but those have wholly different considerations than bullets.

Read in some forum way back (cant remember) that you can DYI Saboted light armor penetrator using Tungsten carbide drill bits.

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Just...no. Some high school kid probably came up with that idiocy. Improvised sabot or not, the aerodynamics of a drill bit are all wrong for it to actually maintain level flight. It would be dangerous to people in the same sense that random metal trash fired out of a cannon is dangerous to people, but you want penetration of an "armored" target.

I'm also trying to figure out where you are already to the point of using large caliber shoulder arms and the "armor" you are trying to penetrate requires more than standard ammunition.

Just...no. Some high school kid probably came up with that idiocy. Improvised sabot or not, the aerodynamics of a drill bit are all wrong for it to actually maintain level flight. It would be dangerous to people in the same sense that random metal trash fired out of a cannon is dangerous to people, but you want penetration of an "armored" target.

I'm also trying to figure out where you are already to the point of using large caliber shoulder arms and the "armor" you are trying to penetrate requires more than standard ammunition.

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Kodiak the tread I read was talking about DIY SLAP 7.62 Nato rounds using tungsten carbide that can defeat the SAPI plate.

I recall they hollowed out the bullet and inserted the tungsten carbide.

I recall they hollowed out the bullet and inserted the tungsten carbide.

Though I myself wont try and wont recommend it!

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Not trying that sounds advisable. What you are describing sounds like the militia equivalent of the redneck who wants to be a meth lab chemist. This is a cross-section of what the professionally produced 7.62mm SLAP looks like:

As you can see, the tungsten projectile itself is very short, flawlessly smooth and also aerodynamically shaped. With milling tungsten carbide being waaaay beyond a DIY graage project, I have no clue how even a very experienced reloader who makes his own ammo would go about producing a facsimile of that from a drill bit.

And mind you, even the professionally-produced 7.62 SLAP round was a failure. It tended to tear up the test barrels it was fired from (something like the sabot being shed inside the weapon as it was fired IIRC). Even then, the increase in penetration compared to existing 7.62 ammunition wasn't all that wonderful. So yeah, I have my doubts about this DIY ammo accomplishing anything worthwhile.

Much cheaper than osmium, and almost as dense. And even 18 K gold is denser than lead.

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Well there is steel cored ammunition the Russians loved to used with most of guns. Haven't seen anyone try doing a tungsten carbide core with a full copper or gilding metal jacket or APCBC configuration.

Because you end up with a rifle calibre round travelling at rifle speeds.
You could build du .44magnum rounds for your dual wielding desert eagles and you'find a market for them in the USA
Well until the EPA sued your arse off that is.
Rather than try and make small arms effective against armour the military response is to get something much bigger.
No doubt Some milita loony has reloaded 12 bores with drill tips to make anti armour weapons.